


keep the weapons down, keep the wounded safe

by zrhueiao



Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Cuddling & Snuggling, F/F, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Post-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-29
Updated: 2020-06-29
Packaged: 2021-03-03 21:40:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,098
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24982489
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zrhueiao/pseuds/zrhueiao
Summary: they'll always be there for each other, whether it's in the fright zone or in bright moon.or, nothing but soft catradora cuddling and getting each other to sleep.
Relationships: Adora/Catra (She-Ra)
Comments: 10
Kudos: 175





	keep the weapons down, keep the wounded safe

**Author's Note:**

> inspired by artofkace's [fanart of melog and catra napping](https://artofkace.tumblr.com/post/619311570783223808/melog-and-catra-having-a-late-sunlight-catnap-for).

"Catra, are you he-" Adora cut herself off mid-sentence. "Catra?"

Adora scanned the room, having walked into an empty room with no sign of her... girlfriend. Now, that word was still new. Even thinking of the word 'girlfriend' gave her tingles in her stomach every time she thought of it and she could never stop blushing when she said it out loud. It was still much easier thinking of Catra as her best friend, the person she loved the most in the universe. But where was Catra?

She trotted towards the balcony, hoping that Catra would be perched on the railings and enjoying the brand new suns that had shown up after they'd both helped to restore Etheria to the regular universe. The weather today was great. The heat wasn't stifling, just comfortably warm and there was a steady cool breeze passing through the Bright Moon castle grounds.

Adora paused in her step as she caught sight of Catra and Melog lying on the balcony floor. An attack? A jolt of fear lanced through her heart. The thought passed as quickly as it came, and Adora breathed a sigh of relief as she noticed the way they were curled up peacefully against each other with contented smiles on their faces. Adora stood where she was, letting herself enjoy the view of her favorite people in the world.

_It had always been rare to see Catra with her guard down, even when they were children in the Fright Zone and it only got worse when the training and punishment grew in harshness as they did._

_The other cadets had caught them sleeping together once, back then, when they'd both been too exhausted from drills for Catra to sleep as lightly as she usually did. They'd laughed, taunted Catra for being Adora's pet. She'd sulked for a long time and refused to go near Adora for a long, very painful week. Catra had spent most of the time hiding away in high places and dark corners, ignoring her during mealtimes in favor of brooding and taking out her aggression on everyone who laughed at her during training exercises, tripping and jumping ahead of all of them with vindictive snarls._

_Adora hadn't known what to do. They went to bed separately after that._

_Night terrors were common in the Fright Zone. Without Catra's warmth, Adora would flail around in the night, punching enemies in her nightmares. When she heard the snuffling and shifting start below her, Catra had jumped off her top bunk and soothed Adora awake._

_"Thank you Catra," Adora would breathe out, the soothing heat rushing into her veins as she was cradled in Catra's arms._

_"I'm sorry." It came out in a rush. Adora felt like she had to keep saying it over and over again because it was more than just this night, it was always, all the time, not being brave enough, not being strong enough, not being able to protect Catra from everyone. "I'm so sorry."_

_"It's not because I like you, idiot. Someone's got to stop you from screaming before you wake the whole dorm up and we'd get in trouble for that too," Catra had whispered and her grip tightened around Adora's arm, claws digging in a little into the soft flesh of her biceps. That was okay, because Adora had gripped Catra's tufts just as tightly, but her tail had flicked in satisfaction. Adora had noticed from the corner of her eye because she'd thought that she noticed everything about Catra at that time._

_She'd always miss the warmth and fur tickling her cheek when it inevitably made way for the wisps of air from the Horde's rickety ventilation system, only to be covered in a thin sheet thrown at her face. By the time she'd fought it off her head, Catra was already curled up at the foot of her bed. Adora's chest hurt seeing her there._

_"If I sleep next to you, I'll end up in the med bay even before our training starts," Catra had said brusquely as Adora sucked in a shallow breath, mismatched eyes not meeting hers._

_"But-"_

_"Go back to sleep, Adora." Catra had sounded so tired. Adora wanted to apologize again, feeling that same exhaustion settling in her bones again and she hesitated. Catra's tail lashed impatiently, and Adora remembered to exhale, before she reached her arm out from underneath the sheets, leaving her hand exposed. Catra's tail wound slowly across her wrist and she huffed as she made herself comfortable, curling up at the foot of Adora's bed, a silent promise to protect her._

The sun glared as Adora narrowed her eyes, plotting her route to Catra's side. She was careful to step softly onto the balcony, her well-worn boots not letting her down. She saw Melog crack open an eye and grinned as they closed it again without stirring. Catra still slept lightly these days, they both did, but she loved being wrapped up for comfort. If Adora was careful, Catra wouldn’t be startled awake.

She slowly tiptoed the last steps to Melog's haunches and sat down lightly next to Catra's relaxed body, careful not to squish her tail. Slowly, Adora tenderly leaned in to hug her from the side. A low purring rumble continued to emanate from Catra, making Adora grin wider. Success!

One hand sneakily went around Catra's head and her fingers teased at the soft fur at Catra's elbow. Adora let herself relax further, settling her body weight against Melog and Catra's sides, feeling the steady rise and fall of their breathing.

She reached out with her other hand to rub behind Catra's ears, knowing Catra loved being touched there by her and only her. Both ears twitched as Adora kneaded softly and steadily against the velvet softness. The purring grew louder as she kept up her ministrations and Adora was happy to keep doing it all day.

There was a shadow of movement by her side and Adora froze, before a lithe tail wrapped around her waist. She slowly let out a sigh of relief. Sometimes, it still amazed her how attuned Catra was to her presence, even when asleep.

Adora slowly picked up the massage again. This time, she couldn't resist pressing a soft kiss to Catra's ear before letting her head rest against Catra's shoulder and whispering under her breath, _"Hey, Catra? I'm always here for you."_

Even as she kept purring, Catra's sleep-rough voice groaned out softly. "Ugh, you're such an idiot. I love you too." _  
_

Catra shifted, before settling in again. "Come and sleep, Adora."

**Author's Note:**

> fic title from [antebellum](https://open.spotify.com/track/7hSPU5mA6fRQVUpghuth1i?si=f9USujtFRIyEaHIANIkG1A) which can be found on adora's playlist.  
> 


End file.
